Our Community Fridge Mural

The community fridge outside the laundromat on our block used to be plain white and covered in stickers. This summer, a group of teenagers from the art program at the rec center asked if they could paint it.

They spent three weekends on it. Now it's covered in a mural of fruits and vegetables with faces: a grinning watermelon, a shy eggplant, a carrot doing a cartwheel. Along the top it says, in big bubble letters, "WE FEED EACH OTHER."

People stop to take pictures. Little kids point at the carrot. The laundromat owner, who keeps the fridge plugged in for free, put a bench next to it so people can sit while they wait for their loads.

The fridge is fuller than it's ever been. I don't think it's a coincidence. Sometimes making something beautiful is how you invite people in.